History of Lodoss
The War of the Destroyer's Resurrection
Ten years had passed since the battle at Fire Dragon Mountain. Kanon and parts of Alania have been under the tyrannical control of Marmo for over fifteen years, since the War of Heroes' climatic end. In Alania, the treacherous Duke Raster, ally to Marmo, has made his move to bring all of Alania under his control. Should the rest of Alania fall, a gateway would have opened for Marmo to storm into the kingdoms of Flaim and Valis.
King Kashue has made plans to send his armies into Alania and make sure Duke Raster and his Marmo allies are crushed, before they can take control of the entire kingdom. But the Marmo controlled Kanon poses a direct threat to Valis. Parn and Deedlit have plans of their own to liberate Kanon, but the threat posed by Duke Raster is an even greater concern. Once Raster has been overthrown, and the Marmo threat removed from Alania, Flaim and Valis would then together turn their attention to freeing Kanon, and then crush the last of the Marmo forces on Lodoss.
But ambitions are also high on Marmo. The evil wizard Wagnard, High priest of Kardis, had plans to resurrect the ancient goddess in the belief that she would grant him every power of magic. To perform the rites to resurrect her, he would have to have three things—the Soul Crystal Ball, the Staff of Life, and the life sacrifice of the "Doorway", who held the reincarnated soul of the high priestess of Kardis, Naneel: Leylia or her daughter Neese. But only Little Neese was "pure" and thus, she was the Doorway.
Dark elves under the command of Wagnard broke into the Treasury House of Castle Akroyd in Blade, the capital of Flaim, and stole the Soul Crystal Ball. Spark, a brash young knight in training, attempts to stop them, but fails and the dark elves escape. After talking with Slayn, Parn and King Kashue, they learn of Wagnard's plans and know that he will next try to obtain the Staff of Life, which was held at the Temple of Falis in Roid, Valis. Kashue assigns Spark, two mercenaries (Garrack and Leaf), the sorcerer Aldo Nova and priest Greivas the task of pursuing the Dark elves (who were on their way to Valis as well) and to attempt to recover the Soul Crystal Ball. He also gives Spark a message to deliver to King Etoh, telling Etoh of Wagnard's plans to steal the Staff of Life.
Spark and his party set off at once. But unbeknownst to them, they are being followed by a cloaked figure. She is none other than Slayn and Leylia's daughter, Little Neese, who is the Doorway and whose destiny is the destiny of all of Lodoss.
At a southern fortress in Flaim, Spark receives more information about the dark elves who were spotted by two people in the desert (Randy and Ryna). Randy had been gravely injured and Ryna feared for his life. When Greivas tried to heal Randy, a sadistic magical booby-trap set by the dark elves is sprung and Randy's body transforms into a gigantic hydra. During the battle, Neese appears, and with her holy magic, destroys the hydra and lays Randy to rest.
Meanwhile, Duke Raster has made his big push to conquer the rest of Alania. His forces, along with contingents of Marmo mercenaries, storm into the free northern provinces of Alania. Master Cecil and the troops under his command fight valiantly to protect the town of Zaxon, but Raster's army is too strong and Cecil is forced to withdraw to the town of Tarba, high in the White Mountains.
Hearing reports of the dark elves who stole the Soul Crystal Ball, Spark and the others set off once more to complete their mission to deliver the message from King Kashue to King Etoh, with the hopes of securing the Staff of Life in Valis.
Meanwhile, Parn and Deedlit make their way to Marmo occupied Kanon and make contact with the Free Army, lead by Prince Reona, the rightful heir to the throne of Kanon. It is their hope to liberate Kanon and drive the armies of Marmo back to their dark island. But at the same time, the ruling council of Marmo has decided to replace the mad dictator, Rabido, who governs the Marmo territory of Kanon, due to his excess, greed, and personal ambition. Ashram himself, along with his dark elf general, Pirotess, are dispatched to "deal with the situation". Both Parn and Ashram seek to bring order to Kanon, each in their own ways, and little do they know their destinies are about to cross once more.
Rabido orders his armies to crush the Free Army once and for all, despite Ashram's orders for him to stand down as governor. Rabido also orders for all the villagers to be killed and the capitol city, Shinning Hill, to be burned down if the Free Army wins. Aware of this, Ashram personally frees the villagers and sends them out of harm's way. In the battle against the Free Army, Rabido is defeated, and killed by Prince Reona. Parn and Deedlit make it to the capitol, only to find it abandoned. There, they encounter Ashram and Pirotess and Parn engages Ashram in combat. The Dark Knight defeats him, but spares Parn's life out of respect.
In Alania, King Kashue's army continues their push to defeat Duke Raster. They succeed in driving his forces back into Alan, the capital city, and there, surrounded, it lay at siege. For weeks, Raster continues to refuse to surrender, and King Kashue is forced to face him to put an end to his tyranny. With ease, Kashue slays Raster, freeing all of Alania.
Spark and the others make it to Roid, capital of Valis, and deliver their message to Etoh. In Roid, they stumble upon Marmo agents planning to capture the Staff of Life, held in the Temple of Falis, but their discovery comes too late. In order to stop Wagnard once and for all, Spark and Little Neese know they must face him. Together, they and their comrades set off for the Marmo occupied territory of Kanon.
The party makes it's way through Kanon and they meet up with Parn, Deedlit and the Free Army, who are still fighting to free the besieged kingdom. But during a banquet celebration, the sinister wizard, Wagnard, appears and captures Neese. Spark is powerless to stop him, for the Dark Necromancy is too powerful. He watches in horror as as Wagnard kidnaps Neese and teleported back to his castle, Conquera, on Marmo.
Moving along with their plans, Parn, Spark, and the others, along with the Free Army, make their way to Rood, the major port city of Kanon, to secure the coast in preparation to invade Marmo. King Kashue and King Etoh dispatch armies to join them.
The Free Army of Kanon storms the city of Rood and breaches the city wall. In the decisive battle, the Marmo forces are pushed back and withdraw in their ships. Ashram himself makes a hasty escape aboard his flagship, leading his soldiers back to Marmo. In his heart, Ashram knows he is defeated and can only watch as his dreams of uniting Lodoss crumble. But his true desire is only to save his people, the people of Marmo. And to that end, he begins planning their exodus from Lodoss.
Parn, Spark, and the others follow quickly after, taking a ship of their own to Marmo, where in Castle Conquera, Wagnard still holds Neese, preparing for the terrible ritual which will resurrect the Dark Goddess of Destruction. But the island of Marmo is a hostile place, and the group of heroes must battle their way through swamps and hordes of monsters. Finally, to their dismay, they face with the most terrifying foe of all, the black dragon Narse.
The heroes fight valiantly, but Narse is too powerful for them. But just before the black dragon finishes them off, Shiris, Queen of Moss, arrives with her Dragon Riders at her side. They take up the battle against Narse while Spark, Parn and the others make their way further towards Castle Conquera. The Golden Dragon Mycen soon joins the fight against Narse, and the mighty dragon of Light quickly slays the evil dragon of Marmo.
As the party continues onward to Conquera, the are intercepted by Karla, the Grey Witch, who has been manipulating events to keep the balance of Lodoss in check. She has seen that, despite all her attempts to control the kings and kingdoms of Lodoss, the scales of balance have fallen out of order. She knows that Parn and his allies are too strong, just as Wagnard has become too strong. If he resurrects Kardis, all of Lodoss will be destroyed, and Darkness will reign supreme. But if Parn and the heroes stop him, the forces of Light will stand victorious. She, the keeper of eternal Grey, asks Parn and the others to give up their lives. She swears to them, if they do, she will destroy Wagnard for them, and stop the resurrection of Kardis. But they refuse the deal and push on, confident they will overcome the dark sorcerer on their own.
With little opposition, the party makes their way into Castle Conquera and begin down a labyrinth interior. Along the way, they encounter Ashram and Pirotess again, who are making final preparations to depart from Marmo and leave Lodoss with their followers. Parn once more engages Ashram in combat, while Spark and the others continue through Conquera to find Neese. But in their dual, the two heroes find they are equally matched, and neither truly wish to kill the other, for they have to come to understand that each of them is fighting for what he believes in. Ashram, his ambitions of ruling a united Lodoss now only a distant memory, wishes only to take his lost people from Marmo and sail away to find a new country to begin again. Parn and Ashram put their swords away, and the opposing heroes part company, never to see each other again. Ashram and his followers set sail for the great unknown...
Meanwhile, deep within the heart of Conquera, Wagnard draws his terrible ritual to a close. The soul of the evil priestess Naneel awakens within Neese, conjured by the necromantic invocations. Naneel traps Neese in a prison of her mind and takes control over her body.
All too late, Spark and the others burst in on the ritual, only to see the last, terrible rites are underway. Karla has appeared, just as she had promised, she now assists Wagnard in the resurrection of Kardis, believing it to be the key for balancing Light and Dark. The heroes rush forth, desperate to stop the ceremony and save Neese. In a desperate attack, Spark and Garrack make a rush at Wagnard, but the dark sorcerer strikes Garrack down, killing him. Just as Garrack falls, Spark plunges his sword through Wagnard's chest. The sorcerer dies screaming, disintegrating in the maelstrom of the sinister powers that explode chaotically from his dying body. Calmly, Karla continued the chant, unphased by Leylia's pleas to stop. Moments before the last words of the incantation are spoken, Parn comes down with his sword and knocks the enchanted circlet from her head, freeing the woman the Grey Witch had possessed and put to an end her invocation. And yet, even as they begin to celebrate their victory, the sky darkens, the air fills with terror, and the ground trembles in fear. Naneel, the High Priestess of Kardis, whose soul was reincarnated within Neese, has awakened and it is she who finishes the calling to her dark goddess. Kardis the Destroyer was awakened and the spirits of Darkness were unleashed upon the world.
Black clouds expand from Marmo, sweeping over all of Lodoss. Terrible Death Hoods swarm from the temple of Kardis in Conquera, killing thousands in the raving plight of final doom. Al had given up hope, all but one. Spark, still desperate to save Neese, charges the dark goddess even as she manifests before him in all her horrific glory. As the body of Neese/Naneel sinks back in into a nether-worldly realm of the dark goddess, Spark jumps after, her, landing in the strange, dreamy plane where Neese's soul is held captive. There, he faces both Naneel and Neese and learns of their dual nature. Both are one, inseparable and the same—Naneel a priestess of Goddess of Destruction and Neese, a priestess of the Goddess of Creation—both deities mortal enemies, and yet, inseparable and the same. Spark inspires Neese not to give up, and she fights on the only way she can—seeming to surrender, she opens herself to Naneel, and the dark priestess gladly takes possession of her soul. Both souls become one, and Neese surrounds the dark essence of Naneel, trapping her. The dark priestess realizes her mistake too late.
Marfa, the holy Mother-Goddess of Creation, has been summoned by Neese, and in a rainbow of light, descends from the heavens to unite with Kardis, just as Neese united her soul with Naneel's. The Dark and Light Goddesses become one and the powers of Darkness are sealed. The black clouds sweep away, the death hoods vanish from sight and the lives they took were restored. Garrack, along with many others, is also resurrected by Marfa. Green life floods Marmo, over taking the twisted darkness. For the first time since it's creation, sunlight graces Marmo's soil. Marfa lays to rest again on Marmo.
The heroes return to the mainland victorious. Neese has been saved, all of Lodoss has been freed from the shadow of Marmo and the destruction the resurrected Kardis would have wrought was averted. Parn is bestowed with the title Knight of Lodoss for his valor and Spark is finally knighted by King Kashue. All is well once more in Lodoss.
